He refused to go in an ambulance the first time. He could have refused the second ride. You can refuse transport or medical care at any time as long as you are able to make rational decisions. As an EMT if you're A&Ox4, alert to time, place, person and event, you make the choices. You do sign a release so we have proof we didn't abandon you, but you make the choice. If we move you without your approval, it's kidnappi…
Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
211–220 of 536 posts
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#212He refused to go in an ambulance the first time. He could have refused the second ride. You can refuse transport or medical care at any time as long as you are able to make rational decisions. As an EMT if you're A&Ox4, alert to time, place, person and event, you make the choices. You do sign a release so we have proof we didn't abandon you, but you make the choice. If we move you without your approval, it's kidnappi…
I don't think the question is "Should ambulances be a thing?" though. It's a question of "Should someone in a situation where they need an ambulance have to balance the potentially life-threatening impact of saying no versus the potentially financially ruinous impact of saying yes?" The (fairly obvious) answer to that no one should be in that situation. It's horrible. Society should find a better way to pay for ambul…
Society has this figured out, at least a decent solution that works until we find a perfect one. Only the US society seems to be unable to find a solution.
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#213He refused to go in an ambulance the first time. He could have refused the second ride. You can refuse transport or medical care at any time as long as you are able to make rational decisions. As an EMT if you're A&Ox4, alert to time, place, person and event, you make the choices. You do sign a release so we have proof we didn't abandon you, but you make the choice. If we move you without your approval, it's kidnappi…
That touches on another very american problem. The injured person now does not know how much the tansport/treatment will cost. And the only persons on the ground cannot quote a price. If they say yes they enter into that zone of having another random health care bill comming in the mail. Is it 900, or 9000? Will my insurance cover this? Is this outside my deductable? ... this is math that no person should have to do while bleeding beside a highway.
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#214You don't have to pay them unless they're specific. I got a bill 3 years after being in an accident and I asked them for the documentation they legally have to provide me (itemization, the legal basis, detailed incident record, attempts on their part to contact insurance) of how they arrived at the sum. It's been a year since and they haven't given me anything. Besides this kind of billing is banned in California now…
My wife had a miscarriage while we were staying at my Uncle's house in New Jersey. I was going to call 911, but instead, he decided he'd call from his landline. Difference between ambulance being free (because it was to a city resident's home) and costing what would have been $5k or so at least. Wild.
Would your wife have been in a different location if you had made the call?
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#215Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#216He refused to go in an ambulance the first time. He could have refused the second ride. You can refuse transport or medical care at any time as long as you are able to make rational decisions. As an EMT if you're A&Ox4, alert to time, place, person and event, you make the choices. You do sign a release so we have proof we didn't abandon you, but you make the choice. If we move you without your approval, it's kidnappi…
I don't think the question is "Should ambulances be a thing?" though. It's a question of "Should someone in a situation where they need an ambulance have to balance the potentially life-threatening impact of saying no versus the potentially financially ruinous impact of saying yes?" The (fairly obvious) answer to that no one should be in that situation. It's horrible. Society should find a better way to pay for ambul…
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#217As much as I like articles that tries to use economics or finance to explain stuff, the "options" analogy is a bit hamfisted. The article starts off by noting about how ambulance is an "option" for a rescue, but even though the analogy might vaguely work, it's not really needed to answer the question. That can be answered far more simply: "medicare and insurance companies pay them too little, so they have to charge e…
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#218He was lucky he was hit by a car.
A slab fronted SUV or pickup would have dragged him underneath and so it goes.
Re: Why American ambulance rides are so expensive
#219Earlier quoted context omitted.
TIL getting an elevator tech to just come out to look at your building's elevator is about $1600. If it's an easy fix, that's all you need to pay. If it's not, it goes up significantly....
Don’t they need to sign something legally binding, the moment they adjust even one minor internal part?